Boyertown grad describes confusion collecting runners in Boston

Shortly after bombs detonated near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, Jeanna Clark became embroiled in the hellish confusion that reigned Monday.

Clark had just finished her second loop as the volunteer EMT aboard a van assigned to pick up distressed runners from medical stations between Brookline and Boston streets when police in their personal cars came charging through the course, “weaving in and out of the runners. It was unimaginable,” she said.

At that time, no official word went out from the Boston Athletic Association’s command center of what had happened. Nothing would go out for another 45 minutes, said Clark, a 2008 Boyertown Area Senior High School graduate.

Advertisement

Runners on the course were mostly in the dark until then.

However, a Ham radio operator assigned to Clark picked up emergency dispatch orders for all EMS personnel to “abandon their posts and divert to Boylston Street” to triage victims from the blast there.

Clark was in charge of the crew in the van, designated Bus 12, which consisted of the amateur radio man used to communicate with the athletic association’s command post and the van’s driver. Both were volunteers, like Clark.

“There was no logistics plan for this if this happened,” Clark said.

According to her, a “makeshift” emergency protocol from the association’s command center was established to create shelters for runners. It became clear, quickly, Clark said, that not everyone was on the same page.

“Every medical station had a different idea of what the new protocol was and where shelters were located,” she said.

Police also refused to allow runners into these shelters for “fear that they had more bombs.”

Clark said the emergency personnel actually driving ambulances might have had different, possibly more orderly experiences than her because they were under coverage of the emergency dispatch radio.

“Because this is so large-scale, they had to patch in to dispatch in every city, so they needed to have amateur radio operators,” Clark said.

Eventually, Clark’s Bus 12 was told to drive back through the course, picking up runners and bringing them to Boston College’s law school, where a shelter was established.

Twelve runners soon filled the van, which had no real supplies to help in case some of the tired runners started crashing from lack of energy. All Clark had was limited first aid equipment. There wasn’t any oxygen on board, either.

“That’s why it was so scary for me,” Clark said. “I’m used to having all this equipment available. I couldn’t even call for help.”

Luckily, no one needed any medical attention in the van, but everyone was confused and scared.

“They were all stable when they got on,” Clark said. “The one lady broke down crying because she couldn’t get a hold of her family. Another person I thought might pass out.”

All the way, stations tried to hail down Clark’s van and force her runners off. She refused, holding to her directions from the athletic association’s command center and kept moving.

Clark said her radio operator couldn’t handle the situation.

“Having my radio operator freeze up left me in the dark,” she said. “The people in those medical aid stations maybe were in the right but my radio operator wasn’t relaying things to me, so we didn’t know.”

Around the 14th mile on the course, Clark said there was police tape, the smell of discharged gun powder and FBI personnel in the area, causing some anxiety among those on board. At that point, the driver of the van “lost it emotionally,” Clark said.

She argued with him and threatened to kick him off the bus if he didn’t drive them “out of harm’s way.”

Eventually, when he asked the opinion of the runners, they told him to listen to Clark, she said.

Despite the difficulties they presented, Clark said she “absolutely” understood the anxiety from both her crew members.

“Our driver, that wasn’t his job, he’s not going to risk his life to drive these people,” Clark said. “My radio operator, this was his first event like this. He just got his certificate for operation. This was our first time working together, we didn’t have a good rapport.”

Eventually, her van safely transported the dozens of runners at the Newton War Memorial shelter. Unfortunately, there was no food there and “limited quantities of water and Gatorade.”

After that, with communication already difficult and her radio operator overwhelmed, there wasn’t anything further Clark could do.

“We ended up having to abandon our post,” Clark said. “We didn’t have any direction. It was either stay at the shelter or go home.”

Clark didn’t get near the finish line Monday but visited it Wednesday.

“They have a little candle display and flowers and police everywhere,” she said. “That was nice to see that it’s kind of somewhat getting back to normal.”

Still, Clark is feeling the affects of her and her city’s experiences.

“I went to work yesterday and I had to leave early. I just wasn’t able to focus,” she said. “It’s weird and uncomfortable to think, ‘Oh my God, this just happened.’”

About the Author

Frank Otto is a general assignment reporter covering Phoenixville, Limerick and Spring-Ford schools in addition to features and spot news. A graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Otto moonlights with the sports department on occasion. Reach the author at fotto@pottsmerc.com
or follow Frank on Twitter: @fottojourno.